The taxpayers’ checkbook
July 1 is the start of a new fiscal year for local governments. This is when the county, cities and schools start spending new tax money based on recently approved 2016-2017 budgets. All these budgets tend to launch with the same conclusions: there is never enough tax revenue; there are too many unmet needs; employee and pension costs keep going up; and everything could be solved if we only agreed to raise new taxes and vote for more long term debt bonds.
WUSD board approves elementary program reconfiguration
Out of concern for continued deficit spending, the Board of Education began a process last year to look deeply at the Windsor Unified School District budget. The way we (along with CA public school district) are funded (often with one-time money that cannot be used for ongoing costs) and the increasing costs to school district (largely due to required pension and healthcare cost increases) has us spending more than we are bringing in. Decisions are being made to keep WUSD solvent while continuing to provide quality programs for our students.
Snapshot: Harvest Time in Sonoma
Despite climate and global warming concerns, this summer in Sonoma County was relatively cool if measured by the late onset of grape harvests.
A reckoning for America
This news organization and community journalism institution focuses on local news, leaving national and world events to larger news sources. But there are times when our close-to-home happenings are overtaken by historical occurrences. Certainly, the violent attack on Jan. 6, 2021 of our U.S. Capitol and Congress was such a date.
Flashbacks from Healdsburg
100 years ago: Aug. 30, 1923Heat Wave Ends as Storm Breaks
A break of almost 20 degrees in the temperature marked the transition of the weather from hot wave to storm conditions. After several days of excessive warmth, with marks of 100 degrees recorded on...
Decoding Teenagers
I remember when I first became a mother. The year was 2002 and it was truly life changing. Then it happened again in 2003, and again in 2007, and for the last time, in 2015. I am the proud parent of four wonderful children, two of them are teenagers. I often remember my parents saying throughout the years, “Just wait Elizabeth, just wait until they are teenagers.” Well, incredibly, that time has come. I find myself now in a very exciting, very scary, very important time with my two older children. There will be no other time in their lives or mine, when they will experience such rapid growth and maturity.
Flashbacks: A look back at local history
The following snippets of history are drawn from the pages of the Healdsburg Tribune, the Healdsburg Enterprise and the Sotoyome Scimitar, and are prepared by the volunteers at the Healdsburg Museum & Historical Society. Admission is always free at the museum, open Wednesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Small businesses, big hearts
The month of May, now almost over, is/was Small Business Month in California and May 5 through 11 was National Small Business Week.